Begin After The End
by penofjade
Summary: The first time we met her was on Platform 9 3/4, saying good bye to her son. Their son. When had they even met? Astoria Greengrass and Draco Malfoy: the sparrow and the peacock. This is the story of how they found each other and how their love was tested.
1. Taking That First Step

Astoria Calliope Greengrass did not like new situations. She especially wasn't fond of walking into new places and having absolutely no idea where she was supposed to go. The only information she possessed about her new job was that she was to get into an elevator and wait for the voice to say "Floor 5: Magical Research Labs 1-7, Dragon Information Library, and the Department of International Magical Cooperation."

None of that sounded too difficult when you read it in a letter, but to actually step out of the fireplace into the large black marble lobby of Britain's Ministry of Magic for the first time was a little disconcerting. It was only made worse in that she suddenly found herself in the middle of rush hour, with what felt the entire wizarding population of England swirling around her. She took a deep breath, stepped quickly out of the way of two rather large witches in matching orange robes, and straightened her shoulders. She looked around, hoping to find an elevator, and eventually after a bit of shoving from those surrounding her, she saw a bank of them several feet away. She hurried toward them, carried along by the wave of others who also needed their use. Within minutes she found herself in one of the medium sized gold contraptions, passing floors that held such interesting things as, "Magical Licensing for Pets", "Potions A-Z", and "Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes."

Finally reaching the fifth floor and succeeding in getting off the elevator, though that proved to take a bit a longer than actually getting on had, she found herself in a small lobby, fairly deserted. After being in such a busy and noisy environment, the quiet felt like a cold glass of water on a hot day, sorely appreciated. Astoria was used to spending her days in quiet solitude in the Hogwarts library, not in what had felt like a gladiatorial arena, where any moment you could expect to see the hungry lions bearing down upon you.

At that very moment, a tall, leggy witch entered the lobby. Her hair was jet black and her skin looked like it could rival cream in its paleness. The woman wore a very stylish outfit under her deep blue robe. Astoria suddenly felt very out of place as the woman looked her up and down quickly before she finally reached the elevator and pushed the button that would call the contraption back.

Astoria, not wanting to remain in the lobby with the beautiful woman, quickly found and followed the gold arrows that would point her to her new place of employment. She briskly walked down the long hallway, seemingly upbeat and confident, when in all truth she wanted to turn tail and run back to her flat and cry herself to sleep. She didn't know why she hadn't just turned to writing for her livelihood. She had gotten wonderful reviews on the book that she had written during her sixth year at Hogwarts, so surely she could just keep writing. However, she knew her parents had been proud when she had gotten this job, and she did want to do her best. Perhaps, after a few weeks, she would know for sure if the job really didn't fit. Then, and only then, would she tell her parents that what she really wanted to do was write. With that resolution made, Astoria mentally shook herself and prepared for what could only be the worst thing she would ever have to face. But, after all, you only have to face it the first time once. After that, you know what to expect and can thus prepare accordingly for it.


	2. Getting Settled

A.N. Here's the second chapter in this new fanfanfiction. In the last chapter, I give Astoria with a middle name...I invented the middle name because I felt she needed it. If J.K. ever gives us a different one, then I will most assuredly change it. I didn't put a summary really with the first chapter, and there wasn't really enough room for it in the summary box. Here's what I had originally come up with: "The first time we met her was on Platform 9 3/4, saying good bye to her son. Their son. When had they even met? Astoria Greengrass and Draco Malfoy: the sparrow and the peacock. This is the story of how they found each other and how their love was tested. Would it be enough to keep them together? Let's all pretend that we didn't read the Epilogue...That we don't know about Platform 9 3/4...Scorpius who? Let's begin where we should - after "The End"."

Anyway, hope you like it! Let me know...reviews are always handy :D

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The door to the Department of International Magical Cooperation was large and was covered in beautiful carved scroll work. Astoria was admiring its intricacies when the door suddenly opened and a rather plump witch whirled out. Astoria hurriedly stepped aside so as not to be run over by the woman. A little uncertain, she was quickly put at ease when the witch in front of her gave a large smile and said in a soft voice that held the lilt of Ireland, "Go on in, deary, I'll be back in but a moment to help you." With that, the woman was off down the corridor.

Astoria, a slight half-smile on her lips, walked around the door she had so recently been admiring and stepped into one of the most beautiful rooms she had ever seen. The walls were covered in artwork from all over the magical world. There were African ritual masks on the soft sage walls and Native American shaman rattles sitting on whimsically carved tables. She was enchanted by the way the room was so eclectically furnished. It reminded her very much of her room in her parents house and her flat in the city. So filled with knowledge it was almost overwhelming, the room was wonderfully refreshing compared to what she had thus far seen.

Behind her, she heard someone entering the room. Turning, she saw that it was the Irish witch who had nearly smacked her in the nose with the door and had thus proceeded to invite her in. The woman came over to Astoria and extended a hand, "My name is Mary O'Shacey, I'm Mr. Alderton, our interim department head, assistant. Interim going on five years now. He does his best, even though he's no Mr. Crouch. You can just call me Mary, everyone else does." She smiled as she wrapped up her introduction.

Astoria blinked as the woman vigorously shook her hand. She found her voice only after the smaller woman had finished speaking. "I'm Astoria Greengrass," she managed to get out, still rather stunned by what a whirlwind this small person was. "I was to report here to start work today."

Mary's smile grew, if that was possible. "Why so you are! And such a pretty little thing, too! The boys won't know what to do!"

Astoria felt herself blushing as the woman turned and hurried over to a small desk in the corner that was covered with nicknacks. She grabbed a folder that was sitting on the desk top and hurried back over to Astoria who had yet to move any farther into the office than a few feet. Astoria could already tell that the Irish witch had more energy than her sister's cat had at two in the morning. Although, Astoria felt that she and the witch were going to be much better friends than she and the cat were.

After being handed the red folder, she was led down a long hallway that had doors nearly side by side. Stopping about halfway down the hallway, Mary opened one of the doors and ushered Astoria in. Waving her hand to bring the lights up, she revealed an office that made Astoria take a quick breath. It was, if anything, even more beautiful than the lobby had been! But it was beautiful to Astoria for the sheer emptiness it presented. There was no furniture there for her to work around, just lovely empty space.

Mary turned to her and said, "Feel free to bring in furniture and objects from home. As you can see, it's a furnish as you want room. You can look through the folder for information concerning your new job here, and I'm right out in the lobby if you need anything." Seeming to understand the look of stunned joy on Astoria's face, she turned and quietly left the room, shutting the door behind her.


	3. Mr Malfoy

Astoria, never one to put aside a task for long, eyeballed the room and then began jotting notes on a piece of parchment she had pulled from the depths of her shoulder bag. She spent most of the morning that way, working on what she would need and how she wanted the room to look. Before she left for lunch, she changed the colors of the walls from their stark whiteness to very pale green and the floor to a warm hardwood. Knowing exactly what furniture she wanted, she hurriedly left the office, making much better time getting to the fireplaces in the lobby thanks to the decreased number of people.

Grabbing a quick bite while at her flat, she shrunk the objects that she wanted to take with her and placed them in her shoulder bag. Upon returning to the Department of International Magical Cooperation, she quickly set up her office and took a seat behind her cherry wood desk. Only then did she open the folder that Mary had given her. She spread out the papers she found inside it so that she could see what they all were.

One of the first to catch her eye was the employee list. She only recognized two names on it: Percy Weasley and Draco Malfoy. She did not know either of them personally, but Percy was the older brother of Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny Weasley. Draco was someone who everyone knew of. He had made many bad decisions, but had, in the end, made the correct one, which was truly the most important part, after all. She was glad that he had. She sat back, remembering the night of the last battle. She had remained to help fight, for Hogwarts was her solitude and she had wanted to help protect it. She could distinctly remember looking across the Great Hall that night and seeing the blond Slytherin sitting between his parents, all of them looking tired and worried. She had been glad for their choice and had not given them another thought. Others, she learned later, had not been so kind. Astoria rarely held a grudge, so to find that so many of her fellow students did was a little shocking. It honestly drove her deeper into her books and away from human interaction.

That, however, would have to change now that she was working at the ministry. She would be required to work with wizards and witches from all over the world. She knew that this job would be a challenge when she applied for it, but now, as she looked around at her very own office, she could feel the fears and worries of earlier slipping away. She had not, after all, been hired for her looks. She had been hired for her talent where learning was concerned. She was to be in charge of Cultural Exchange. She would learn about the traditions and histories of other countries and would then teach those countries about the magical history of England and the British Isles. It would be hard work, but it would be most satisfying.

I finally feel as though there is something I can do to help others, Astoria mused to herself as she placed the papers back into the folder and then dropped the that into one of the desk drawers. Looking at the small gold clock that now sat on her desk, she saw that it was time to head home. She wouldn't start her first full day of work until the morning, and she needed to figure out what she would wear. Not having a uniform was both a blessing and curse in that she got to be creative but that meant she actually had to pay attention to what she was wearing. Everyday a new challenge, Astoria thought to herself as she closed her office door and locked it with a flick of her wand.

Heading down the hallway toward the lobby, she saw a door in front of her open and a tall, blond wizard step out. She couldn't see his face as he closed his office door, but she was fairly certain it was Draco Malfoy. Not really having any reason to say anything to him, she walked by and headed for the outer door, waving goodbye to Mary. Already thinking about dinner, she didn't realize that someone was behind her until he stepped into the elevator with her. Still not really paying attention, it took his hand on her shoulder to make her look up at him and blink through her glasses.

Her green eyes met his grey ones. After a second or two, she looked down at his hand where it still rested on her shoulder. Looking back up at him over the rim of her glasses, she cocked an eyebrow and asked, "Did you want something then?"

Draco, quickly removed his hand and placed it in his trouser pocket, replying, "I just wished to know if something was wrong, you seemed a little unfocused."

"Oh, I was thinking about dinner," was her answer to a question that he had obviously repeated several times. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you. I do that sometimes."

He merely nodded and looked ahead, waiting for the doors to open onto the main lobby. Astoria stepped out, again not really paying attention to the blond wizard. This time, her mind had wandered to the book idea she had been tossing around in her head. However, she wasn't far gone enough yet to miss his next question. "What's your name? I'm afraid I missed it."

"No, you didn't. I didn't tell you." She looked at him as she said this, and watched his face change subtly. His mouth thinned a little and his nose flared slightly. She smiled, seeing that he wasn't quite sure how to respond. "It's Astoria. Astoria Greengrass." She held out her hand.

He took it in his and shook it, a new expression now on his face. "You're a Greengrass? Any relation to–".

Here she cut him off, "She's my sister." Whenever people, especially men, asked that question, Astoria drew into herself. She was used to being compared to her sister, who was tall, blond, and lovely. There were even those who had wondered if Astoria had been adopted. No, she assured them, she was very much a true Greengrass.

She pulled her hand from Draco's and started walking again. He hurried to keep up with her. "I don't remember seeing you at school."

"I'm two years younger than Daphne. I just graduated. I doubt you would remember me. I was fonder of the library than of empty classrooms." Astoria was finding herself very out of character when speaking to this blond Slytherin. She usually had a very hard time talking to someone she did not know well. With him however, she found herself doing something that Astoria Greengrass did not do: flirt. Or at least, that's what she thought she was doing.

Turning as she reached the fireplaces, she said, "Good night, Mr. Malfoy." And with that she entered the Flu Network and soon found herself in her own living room. Her heart was beating a little faster than normal, but she put that down to the trip through the fireplace. She knew that it could have nothing to do with the rather nice looking wizard she had just left behind. Or the way he had been looking at her, almost as though she were something he couldn't quite understand, but was very willing to attempt to figure out.


	4. Dress Up

The next morning, Astoria decided to wear one of the new outfits that she had picked out with her sister's help. She and Daphne weren't the closest of sisters, but they managed to do fairly well outside of school, especially now that Daphne seemed to have found a guy who might be "the one", as she called him. A wizard from Spain, he was very nice and Astoria hoped it worked out. She did want to see her sister happy. And besides, if they got married, they'd spend half the year in Spain, which would mean the "Cat From Hell" would go with them.

The outfit she finally settled on was made up of a light grey pencil skirt and a pale green, short sleeved blouse. Over top of the shirt went a vest that matched the skirt. She then stepped into three inch gray heels and donned a dark gray robe. Her pixie hairstyle required little attention, so it took hardly anytime to finish her morning preparations. A little eyeliner and mascara, a touch of lip gloss, and she was ready to go.

Upon entering the lobby of the Ministry for the second day, Astoria felt much surer of herself than she had the day before. However, she didn't notice the looks of approval many of the men she passed were giving her. She hadn't yet learned that it wasn't just physical beauty that attracted the attention of most men, it was the confidence one had in oneself. After seeing the woman yesterday, Astoria had wilted, once again blending into the wall. Now, though, she was a woman who cared not one iota for what those around her thought; she was sure of herself, and that was all that mattered.

Really, she wasn't thinking anything of the sort, she was merely thinking over what the paper in the folder had said she would be in charge of. She wasn't focusing on how confident she felt. No. She was merely doing what she did best: thinking.

Being so lost in thought, she was surprised to find herself standing outside the elevator on the fifth floor. I really shouldn't do that, she thought to herself as she turned to begin walking down the correct hallway. As she turned, however, she realized that she was not alone. Draco Malfoy stood looking at her, an eyebrow cocked in, she was sure, mimicry of hers from the evening before. Giving a little start, she nodded briskly, and mumbled, "Good morning," before she actually began moving.

He inclined his head and waited for her to proceed him down the hallway. Astoria had the oddest feeling that he was looking at her rear as she began the short walk to the outer office of the Department of International Magical Cooperation. Shaking off the irrational thought, thinking to herself, 'Why would he be looking at that after all? It isn't anything special. A little too large, if anything else.'

When she reached the door, a pale, long fingered hand appeared from somewhere behind her to open it. A little unsure of how she should respond, she looked up and gave Draco a small smile and head nod, not quite meeting his eyes. She might be a little more at ease with him than others, which she couldn't explain, but she was still a little nervous. Books were her friends, for the most part, and men had never really seemed too important. That was Daphne's area of expertise, not hers.

Somehow, while her mind at been at work thinking up inconsequential things about Malfoy, she had made it past a smiling Mary O'Shacey and into her own office. Bringing the lights up, Astoria took a seat gingerly behind her desk. For a first day, things weren't going too badly. Being somewhat nervous around a man who was as good looking as Draco Malfoy wasn't odd. She was rather proud of herself for not tripping and falling flat on her face in front of him. Such things had been known to happen before. She had learned the hard way that stairs and heels were not a good idea when the combination also included her.

Crossing her legs, she sat back and took a deep breath. She would make it through the day, and she would do it with confidence. She wasn't going to let a little thing like a racing heart change that. No. Calm was best. She thought better with calm. Little did she know "calm" was not something in large supply in the Ministry. The question being, could she handle the chaos and rise to the occasion, or would she burn out and crawl home, afraid to try again?


	5. Devil Cat

By the time Astoria stood up and left her office that evening, she was tired. Very tired. But it was a tired that reminded her in some ways of how she had felt after a good Saturday sequestered in the library at Hogwarts. Her eyes ached a little and her back was a little sore from sitting all day, but she was pleased with her first day of work. She gave a sigh as she locked her office door and then walked towards the outer office.

She hadn't seen Draco Malfoy all day, but she didn't dwell on that, not knowing exactly what his job at the ministry would entail. She had apparently left her office just late enough to avoid the crowd that she had encountered both mornings. She made a mental note that maybe coming in a little early wouldn't be a bad idea, if for no other reason than to avoid the congestion.

Her heels clicked loudly on the black marble floor, and the sound seemed to echo back at her from all sides, thanks to the tunnel like feel of the lobby. The silence, however, didn't unnerve her. She was much more uncomfortable in loud and hectic situations than she was in quiet ones. She reached the bank of fireplaces still thinking about when a good time would be to head in the next morning, using the flu network without a second thought. That was one thing she was quite skilled at, using the flu. Some witches and wizards seemed to have the worst luck where that particular mode of transportation was concerned. They would either come out all sooty or in a heap on the floor, or, as was prone to happen, both. Astoria, however, found it to be the easiest of the many forms of transportation available to the wizarding world.

She stepped into the fireplace in the ministry and then, a second later, walked gracefully into her well appointed London flat. She had to admire the view as she hurried towards her bedroom to change into something more comfortable. She wasn't used to wearing high heels and tight skirts for so long. School uniforms weren't quite as fashionable as the things that Daphne had helped her pick out. And, as Daphne loved to say, "Fashion comes at a price, from your pocket and your body."

After slipping into a rather worn pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt that bore the logo of Ravenclaw, she padded barefoot into her kitchen and set about fixing herself an easy dinner. She wanted to have a little while to sit down and read and then work on her own story idea before heading to bed. By this time, Dexter, her feather eared dachshund, had perched himself on the threshold between kitchen and living room, obviously wanting to make sure that his food needs weren't overlooked. Dexter had been a graduation present from her parents. Their family had always had several cats around. Now, Astoria didn't hate cats. Hate was too strong a word. She just wasn't a large fan of them. However, because of the large number of cats that the Greengrass family possessed, it had never seemed prudent, in her parents mind, to get a dog. Why invite issues like that into the house? So, Astoria had put up with multiple cats, most of whom were perfectly happy staying out of her way. That was, until Daphne had brought home the monster that was Princess. Astoria was positive that the little beast had climbed out of some hole somewhere and that its demon master was out there looking for it. She and Princess had kept each other on their toes the last three years that Astoria had lived at home. Daphne could never quite understand why the cat was such an issue. She would often ask, "What exactly is wrong with Princess, Tori? She hasn't done anything to you!"

To which Astoria would reply with a snort and walk away. Who was she to tell her sister that the cat she so firmly claimed as harmless could probably bring down a standing army with her weave and bob maneuvers. All it would take would be a stairway and semi-darkness and she could decimate the entire thing in minutes. It had gotten to the point where Astoria wouldn't walk down the stairs in the middle of the night for fear that she would end up at the bottom with two green eyes shining at her from halfway up. The few times that had happened the cat had barely escaped with her life and Astoria had sported several nice, large bruises for awhile.

So, when her parents had presented her with the cute, wriggling little body after she had returned home from graduation, she had been thrilled. They had never gotten her anything that made her happier. Dexter made all the years of living with the Devil Cat worth it, especially when the dog snapped at the feline the first time she tried to swipe him. The furry menace never bothered him again after that.


	6. Language of Flowers

Several weeks passed in this way, and Astoria soon found herself quite comfortable with her position in the Ministry. Her original plan had been to "try" it, always intending to back out after a week or so. However, thanks to the friendly advances of Mary O'Shacey, she found she didn't really want to leave. Even though sitting in her flat writing all day sounded lovely, the excitement of working in a place like the Ministry of Magic couldn't help but affect her.

Getting to know some of her coworkers in the department, she quickly decided who she wanted to get to know better, and who she needed to avoid. A few of the other young witches seemed especially protective of their position as "single young female." Astoria left them alone; she'd managed to avoid girls like that all through Hogwarts, why would she start something now that she was an adult?

One morning, as she entered the office, Mary pointed to a bouquet of roses which was sitting on a three legged table near her desk. "Those are for you, deary," was her response to the confused look Astoria gave her. "I don't know who they're from, but they just smell wonderful!"

Walking over to the artfully designed grouping of yellow roses, she looked for any type of identification. Shrugging after being just as unsuccessful as the secretary, she picked up the arrangement, pulling a flower from it as she did so. "Here's one for you, Mary," she said, as she held it out to the older witch.

Giving her young coworker a surprised look, Mary said softly, "Are you really letting me have one of your flowers?"

"Why not?" asked Astoria as she took a deep breath, inhaling the lovely scent. While roses weren't her favorite flower, they were still very beautiful and had a wonderful aroma to them. "You like them, don't you?"

Nodding, Mary transfigured a quill into a vase and gently placed the single rose into it. "Aw, it looks so lovely! Thank you, my dear," she said, smiling faintly in Astoria's direction.

Nodding, the younger Greengrass sister headed down the hall towards her office. One of the women she tried to avoid passed her on the way, saying to the air as she walked farther along, "Isn't that sweet? I wonder if it's one of those researchers upstairs?"

Ignoring the taunting words of the tall redhead, Astoria entered her office and placed the bouquet in a prominent spot. No one ever came to visit her, but that didn't mean she couldn't honor the thoughtfulness of the gift.

The rest of the day passed in a blur, with meetings and translation work keeping her busy and distracted. As she readied herself to leave that night, she glanced over at the flowers. Why not take them home, she wondered to herself. Deciding they would look quite pretty on her kitchen table, she picked up the vase and carried them back into the hallway and down towards the lobby. As she passed an open door, she saw the blond head of Draco Malfoy bent over his heavy wooden desk. He glanced up as she passed, meeting her gaze for a moment before she moved out of sight.

After fighting through the crush of bodies in the elevator, she maneuvered her way towards a fireplace, waiting patiently for her turn to flu home. A voice spoke over her right shoulder, surprising her a little. "Those are quite nice. Did someone get them for you?"

Draco Malfoy was standing behind her in line, apparently in no hurry to get home. "Yes, though I still don't know who it was that sent them."

"So you have a secret admirer? Well, I must say he has a wonderful way of expressing himself. After all, aren't yellow roses supposed to symbolize friendship or something?"

"I…well, I don't know. I've never looked into that sort of thing before. Do you really think there's a deeper meaning to them?" She was interested to know what he thought. She had never even considered that they were meant as anything beyond what they appeared: a nice bouquet of flowers.

"There might be. Who knows?" Before she could answer, it was her turn to use the fireplace, so she stepped in, threw the powder, and said her address. The last thing she saw of the Ministry was Malfoy standing, watching her, a slight smile on his face.

Stepping out of the fireplace, she moved into the kitchen and placed the bouquet on the table. Making the decision to research flower meanings after dinner, she set about preparing Dexter's dish. As he wiggled and squirmed himself silly devouring his food, she pondered what the blond man had said. A language using flowers? What an interesting idea.


End file.
